3-beds cheaper to rent in Abu Dhabi

Asteco report, however, says two-beds in the capital are costlier

For those enduring the commute from Dubai to Abu Dhabi for work in the belief they are saving on rent here’s a game-changer.

According to Asteco, a UAE-based property consultancy, it costs more to rent a three-bed apartment in Dubai than Abu Dhabi.

In its H1 report on the Abu Dhabi property market Asteco claimed that average rents for three bedroom units in Dubai were four per cent higher than those in the capital.

Rents for three-bed units were at Dh122,000 per annum in Dubai, a 10 per cent increase in the second quarter over the first, while in Abu Dhabi, average rents stood at Dh117,000 pa, registering a three per cent jump q-o-q.

In low-quality buildings in the capital’s Corniche rents ranged between Dh110,000 and Dh130,000 pa, a nine per cent decline q-o-q.

Meanwhile, average rent of two bedroom apartments in Abu Dhabi were Dh92,000 pa, while in Dubai it stood at Dh76,000 pa, 21 per cent lower than the capital.

For one-bedroom apartments in Abu Dhabi, average rent was Dh64,000 pa, while in Dubai it was Dh53,000 pa. Studio apartments were available for Dh42,000 pa in Abu Dhabi and Dh35,000 pa in Dubai.

In the same report, Asteco said rents fell three to 14 per cent in the second quarter compared to first quarter with low to mid-quality developments in the older residential districts of the capital continuing to remain under pressure for the remainder of the year.

Knight Frank, a global property consultancy, said recently that prime residential rents in Dubai rose one per cent in the first quarter 2012.

However, it declined 3.9 per cent from March 2011 to March 2012, but the declines slowed compared to 2010-2011 period.

Kuwait-based Global Investment House has said that rents have started to increase in selective areas of Dubai after the pace of rental income slowed down significantly in 2011.